In this article, I want to explore why many “social media” campaigns run by brands of all sizes are not very social at all. They’re merely loud, annoying, look-at-me bursts of promotional nonsense.
And if your brand is doing something like that, by pushing out content on social channels without really getting social, you’re probably not seeing the results you wanted.
But it’s not that people don’t like your brand. They just don’t like your message.
This can all be fixed. Let me show you how….
Crafting the Right Message
Thankfully, your message can be changed, so there’s light at the end of the tunnel!
An awesome social media campaign needs to be engaging, informative, and entertaining. If you’re not trying to do all three of these things, then you’re missing out on the full potential of social media for brand.
I see it every day. Brands that never ask questions, never respond to questions, never post interesting or offbeat content, and never tie their content together to form a larger story.
All they do is post more product updates (ugh), or sales (blah), or boring announcements (eek), with the occasional link to an off-site blog post thrown in to “add value.”
In 2015, that strategy just won’t cut it.
As consumers, we’re tired of all this weak content. We want more originality, not more notifications.
This is even more important for a brand profile that it is for an individual, because you and I are much more likely to click that “unlike” button when dealing with a boring brand with nothing interesting to share than we are to unfriend someone.
How then, should a brand create a social media campaign that actually gets results?
Time to Get Personal
It’s simple, really, if you follow a few simple rules, starting with this one….
Treat your brand as if it were a person.
That might sound strange at first, but it works. Let me share just how you can do this.
First, the average social media user wants to engage with friends, family, and coworkers. They’re not looking to be sold a new product or hear about a new service, at least not all the time.
So, in order to engage with the average user, brands should act like people too, as much as they can without losing what they stand for.
Of course, context is important here. IF you’re brand happens to be a law firm, you obviously have less wiggle room with how casual you can be than if you run a food truck. Each case is unique. But hopefully you catch the drift.
Try to post content related to the people behind your brand. Share photos of your team, congratulate folks on big milestones, show what values your brand really stands for, etc. These small gestures can add a ton of personality to your overall social media presence.
Less Monologue, More Dialog
Additionally, try to respond and engage with as many people as possible. Ask questions, answer questions, and be responsive. Oh, and one more thing. Handle customer service issues publicly, when possible.
All of this creates a level of transparency and responsiveness that so many of us look for when determining which brands we trust and which we don’t want to deal with.
Doing this makes your brand more authentic. And it’s a great way to stand out from the other 95% of brands on social media that rarely engage at all.
It’s Not About You
Lastly, stop talking about yourself.
This final point is a real important one. Your followers don’t want to hear about you all the time. So, only posting on social media with news and announcements won’t get you very far.
Try finding out what your audience really wants to hear. Maybe it’s something to do with current events, or maybe it’s how to solve a particular problem.
Whatever you post, try to make the bulk of it engaging, entertaining, and informative, from the view of your followers. Try to think about what you would want to see on your social channels if you just encountered the brand for the first time.
I’m willing to bet “product announcements” wouldn’t be the first thing on your list.
Give it a Try
Well, there we have it. Hopefully this article has given you a few good ideas for personalizing a social media campaign for your brand.
Or maybe it hasn’t. Either way, you read (or skimmed or skipped) to the bottom.
And this is usually the part where I ask for your feedback. So, hit me up on Twitter or in the comments section below and let me know your thoughts. Also, I’d like to hear your tips and tricks on this topic. Let’s keep the conversation going.
